


He Who Desires

by SweetXscape



Category: Dolittle (2020)
Genre: Age Difference, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Consensual Underage Sex, First Kiss, Fluff, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Non-Penetrative Sex, Pining, Secret Crush, Sharing a Bed, The Author Regrets Nothing, Tommy Stubbins is Dolittle's Kryptonite, Tommy Stubbins-centric, Underage - Freeform, Underage Kissing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:54:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28439469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SweetXscape/pseuds/SweetXscape
Summary: Tommy can’t truly explain or make sense of how or when it began. Maybe he could make sense of the how’s and why’s, for there had been aplethoraof reasons that factored into the how’s and why’s, reasons that would probably take him a century to list, but it was the when that always left him stumped; when his feelings had changed, when the infatuation developed into something more intimate, when the admiration had become a fixation, when that lust began to creep into his meaningful gazes when he thought no one had been paying attention.「In which Tommy’s got a crush on an eccentric animal doctor and isn’t quite sure when, exactly, it became that way for him」
Relationships: John Dolittle/Tommy Stubbins
Kudos: 10





	He Who Desires

**Author's Note:**

> I know I’m wrong for this, but I simply had to.  
> Cheers to a new year!

* * *

Tommy can’t truly explain or make sense of how or when it began. Maybe he could make sense of the how’s and why’s, for there had been a _plethora_ of reasons that factored into the how’s and why’s, reasons that would probably take him a century to list, but it was the when that always left him stumped.

He couldn’t exactly pinpoint when things had changed for him, when the infatuation developed into something more intimate, when the admiration had become a fixation, when that lust began to creep into his meaningful gazes when he thought no one had been paying attention, when he thought the feelings he’d began to develop over time had been a secret of his own, locked away, hidden from the prying eyes of all that encompassed society — including the animals, but of course, they’d been the first to take notice, the first to make him reconcile with the fact that he hadn’t been as discreet about his little crush as he hoped he’d been.

Tommy feared that if the animals had noticed, could see right through him, could see what he’d desperately tried to hide, that it would only be a matter of time before _h_ e would find out and that had been the absolute last thing Tommy ever wanted to happen.

Doctor Dolittle had provided a safe haven for him away from home, away from being the disappointment he knew he was to his uncle. Tommy knew he was, simply going off of the harsh words his uncle would bestow upon him in moments of brash anger, the things his uncle would say to his aunt about him during the late nights he thought Tommy was asleep.

Spending majority of his time with Doctor Dolittle and the animals was therapeutic, relaxing and it genuinely made him happy. He loved who he was when he was when he was with the man old enough to be his father, loved spending his time doing what he loved most with the person he loved most.

Tommy thinks he may have fell for him that very moment he met the eccentric man for the very first time when he’d brought the squirrel that he’d injured while out hunting with his uncle. He brought the tree dwelling rodent to the only person he knew could help.

Tommy had heard whispers about Doctor Dolittle among the children in his neighborhood. The man that could communicate with animals in a way most deemed unusual and quite weird. Tommy hadn’t known much about the man other than the fact that he ran a center for folks to bring their animals if they were injured, ill, or in any form of distress. He’d ran it with his wife; Lily Dolittle, who had passed away a year prior to his meeting of John Dolittle. Lily’s passing had been the talk of the town for quite some time along with the rumours that John Dolittle was going to shut his business down now that he had become an unexpected widower.

The manner in which Tommy met the older man was unconventional and felonious, but he was desperate.

And the older man had been _so_ different than what Tommy had been used to; John Dolittle marched to the beat of his own drum, lived his life the way he saw fit, regardless of what people thought. That quality about Dolittle had been what initially drew Tommy in, a trait he’d lacked before he’d become acquainted with the infamous animal doctor.

And people had _a lot_ of thoughts and opinions where John Dolittle was concerned and his special “gift” to communicate with animals.

_A lot_ of people thought he was a freak and Tommy’s uncle was one of them. If he’d known it was John Dolittle his nephew was spending majority of his time with on days he thought little Tommy was out practicing his haunting skills, he would blow a fuse.

Tommy had found joy in his rebellion, joy in finally doing something in his life that he’d wanted to do and not what he thought his uncle wanted him to do. That was when he suspected Dolittle had begun to rub off on him in ways Tommy had not yet recognized.

It wasn’t easy in the beginning of when they first met, for reasons unknown to him at the time, John Dolittle had almost immediately dismissed him, pushed him away and treated him like a nuisance.

But one thing his uncle had taught him on their hunts was to never give up once he finally set his sights on something. Tommy had his sights set on John Dolittle and had no plans on giving up, he almost did, but he didn’t, even after the man refused to let Tommy join him in his voyage across the vast sea.

He was sent home with his tail tucked between his legs, back home where he’d be reminded of the disappointment he was to his uncle for not being the skillful hunter he so desperately wanted him to be.

But then something unexpected happened, something quite uncanny, unbelievable but magical nevertheless.

He’d been procured by Dolittle’s animals; they’d spoken to him in a similar way Dolittle had spoken to them and it was Poly; the striking parrot with the golden wings and bright blue patch of fur down the middle of her body. It was her who had told him he was a special boy, that he belonged on the voyage of a lifetime with Dolittle, that what she saw in him she’d only seen in very few humans.

And Tommy jumped at the opportunity to go, despite his initial hesitation; he quickly dressed and climbed onto Betsy the giraffe’s back as they darted through the small town like bandits and outlaws until they reached their destination, out on the sea where Dolittle’s ship had sailed.

Of course Dolittle hadn’t been too pleased about it, disgruntled with the idea of his childish presence on the ship with him. Tommy had overheard a bit of his grumbling to Poly about it.

It was obvious that his presence would be a thorn in the older man’s sides, what with the way he would boss him around, create more work for him to do, left him to sleep out in the cold where he only had Yoshi, the polar bear and Chee-Chee, the large mountain gorilla to keep him warm.

Tommy endured it all without complaints because this is where he wanted to be, this was where he belonged and although Dolittle hadn’t agreed, Tommy knew in his heart of hearts that this is where he needed to be.

However, as time progressed, the doctor’s heart began to soften up to him. Tommy didn’t why, but he was glad. Perhaps, it had been all those long, quiet nights floating away in the sea, where not a single soul could be heard or seen for miles and miles, it was only them and no one else.

Perhaps, that had been when it happened for him and for Dolittle, too. When Tommy had recognized the feelings he’d developed for the older man went far beyond innocent and unassuming, especially after their ship was attacked; the day he thought he’d lost Dolittle forever. When that rope that had been connected to him while under water had ripped in half, so did his heart.

Unshed tears welled up in his eyes, blurring his vision as his belly churned in a way that made him nauseous.

He was dead. He was gone. Never to be seen or heard from again. And it was his fault.

But then the unexpected happened, Dolittle climbed back onto the ship, dripping wet and breathless, but most of all: alive.

“You saved me, did you? Fair play. Thanks very much.” He says to him in that thick, but very familiar Welsh accent as he coughs up a bit more water that clogged up his lungs.

And it was after that particular day that the dynamics between them had changed quite a bit.

Dolittle hadn’t been as closed off from him anymore, hadn’t maintained that aloof attitude he once had with Tommy in the beginning. The older man had begun to speak to him in a way that hinted to Tommy that he’d genuinely been interested in what he had to say, that he wasn’t merely an annoyance or the menace he assumed he would be on this voyage.

“Take the wheel, Stubbins.” Dolittle tells him one cloudless night after awaking him from a peaceful slumber.

“Are you sure?—”

“Yes, yes, I would like to speak with you about something.”

Tommy tentatively takes the wheel of the ship, gazing out onto the vast blue sea, the moon gleaming brightly above, casting a peculiar glow upon the large body of water that made him feel as if he was in a dream.

The familiar presence that lingered behind him and the grip of the wheel directing the ship is what truly kept him grounded in that moment.

“The bees are buzzing about you,” Dolittle says, from somewhere behind him. Tommy turns his head to the side and sees him leaning against a solid surface with his arms folded against his chest. Curly brown locks of hair blowing from the light oceanic breeze in the air.

“I think I’m beginning to understand what some of them are saying,” Tommy replies, a bit too embarrassingly giddy for his own good. “Like when the bees are buzzing around, in circles,” he begins making ridiculous buzzing noises in a poor attempt at mimicking the bees, “it means: back off kid.”

Tommy was rambling; something he did quite often when he was nervous and he suspected Dolittle could sense it, though he didn’t interrupt any of the rambling, only let him go on and on until Tommy had gotten so caught up with his own musings that he’d lost track of the wheel, to which Dolittle had leaned forward, pressing a hand atop of his own to help steady the wheel.

Needless to say, Tommy froze, his rambling coming to a screeching halt, mouth drying and tongue feeling three sizes bigger.

“Allowing that mind of yours to wonder off like that will leave us shipwrecked.”

It was meant to be a joke, but Tommy didn’t laugh, because the older man had been rather close, closer than Tommy could stand, so close the scent of him flooded his nostrils, making him feel a sense of vertigo.

He turns to gaze at the older man who stood inches away from him, looking at him in a way that made Tommy wonder if he saw it coming, if he felt it too. Tommy could never know for sure, but he planned on finding out soon.

Tommy wasn’t sure if something had been in the air that night or he was simply high off of the adrenaline the situation itself had supplied him, but either way, he took his chances and did not allow the moment to escape like he had so many times before.

The kiss wasn’t as romantic as he pictured it would be in his head. It was rushed, sloppy and left _a lot_ to be desired.

What could he say? It was his first kiss, he didn’t exactly know what he was doing, had only seen his aunt and uncle share a kiss every so often, had seen it once in a school play, but other than that, he was embarrassingly clueless on the matter.

The older man hadn’t pushed him away like Tommy had fully expected him to do, only offered up an unreadable expression once Tommy slowly pulled away, breathlessly. Just as Tommy opened his mouth to speak, the candle inside the lantern had abruptly blown out and the ship had violently shook thereafter, knocking him off his feet, promptly ending the moment as Dolittle took possession of the wheel and began shouting orders.

They’d never discussed what happened that night, Dolittle carried on as if it hadn’t happened, but the animals whispered about it when they thought no one was listening to them.

Tommy can admit that he’d been glad things weren’t awkward, but it did bother him that Dolittle pretended as if that night didn’t happen, could move on from it like it didn’t mean anything. Maybe it didn’t on his end, but it did for him.

But Tommy didn’t confront Dolittle about any of it, perhaps he’d been too much of a coward to do so, maybe he’d been afraid that if he did, he would end up getting his heart broken. It was better to leave it alone than risk getting his heart stepped on by the person that meant the most to him, although it was happening anyway, despite everything.

Then, a rainy, stormy night had come upon them. Tommy was a freezing, shivering mess, even in the tight, protective embrace of Chee-Chee. Dolittle had pulled him up by the arm and led him to his small cabin that was surprisingly warm and cozy despite the weather conditions.

Candles filled the small cabin as Dolittle moved around the large cot that took up most of the room to retrieve a few rags to dry themselves with.

“We will have to take these off,” Dolittle says, tossing him a rag as he gestured to their clothes drenched with water. “And let them dry or else we might catch a cold.”

Tommy slowly dragged the rag across his face and neck as he watched the older man begin to undress. He tried not to stare so hard, he really did, but he couldn’t help it.

Curly patches of hair covered Dolittle’s bare chest and under his arms, a happy trail that led down the middle of his torso, all the way down until it reached his…

Tommy blinked, unsure of whether to look away or not, though he found himself unable to, even if he wanted.

This wasn’t the first time he’d seen a naked man before — far from it, but it was his first time seeing _this_ particular man naked and it ignited something pleasant within him that he’d never felt before in all of his very brief years spent on earth.

Tommy caught the older man’s eyes as he dragged the rag he held in his possession across his damp skin before tossing it aside and climbing onto the cot, settling underneath the large quilt that covered it.

“Well then, if you planned on standing there all night to freeze to death than you could’ve stayed outside.”

Tommy swallowed thickly and proceeded to unbutton the garments that clothed his soaking wet body. His eyes never strayed away from the older man that occupied the cot who watched him with mild interest with every piece of fabric that peeled away from his body with ease.

Something flickers across the older man’s eyes when he’d slid his underwear off, doing away with the last article of clothing he had left.

Tommy chews on his bottom lip contemplatively as he climbs onto the cot (that felt much smaller now that he was on it) and moved to lie back onto the cushiony pillows, lifting his legs up as Dolittle pulls back the large thick quilt for Tommy as he settles comfortably underneath.

They lie there in utter and complete silence, gazing up at the ceiling as the sounds of thunder echo in the distance and the crackling of the candles surrounding them reverberate throughout the cabin.

Tommy turns his head to the side to face the older man and without thinking; he leans in to press a kiss to the man’s cheek. Dolittle looks at him then, with that same unreadable expression, and Tommy does the unthinkable yet again.

He kisses him.

And the kiss isn’t much better than before; still rushed, still filled with uncertainty, still sloppy as ever.

“Bloody hell,” Dolittle grumbles, pulling away. “You’re a god-awful kisser Stubbins, you know that?”

“Yes,” Tommy replies dejectedly. “…Teach me.”

Dolittle looks at him like he’d grown another head or something.

“ _You_ want _me_ to teach you how to osculate? Is that right?”

“Yes, please I—” Tommy briefly closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before he replies. “…You were the first person I’ve ever done that with and—”

“And you thought I’d be the appropriate person to lend you a hand, yes?”

“Yes…” Tommy answers, his cheeks flushing an adorable shade of pink as he looks away. “Please…”

“Alright, alright, no need to beg. I shouldn’t, but I will because adding you to the crew has been of immense benefit to myself and the others.”

“Really?”

Dolittle nods and clears his throat.

“Alright, first things first, you need to loosen up. If you want a kiss to be sweet and romantic, you need to take your time. You can’t rush these things, not if you want it to be meaningful, and all of that other mushy rubbish, which I assume is what you want it be, correct?”

Tommy nods, eyes wide and eager to learn, hanging on to the older man’s words like they’re gospel.

“Here,” Dolittle reaches for him, wrapping an arm around his waist and pulling him in close, so close Tommy could feel the warmth emanating from his body, the soft prickles of hair that cover his chest, arms and legs as they’re now skin to skin. “If it’s with someone you care about, someone you love, you have to take it slow, so the other person knows what you’re feeling inside…”

Tommy’s eyes close when the older man leans down to press soft kisses to his neck, lips brushing across his adam’s apple, and darting a tongue out against the skin.

He opens his eyes just in time for the kiss Dolittle pulls him into and boy oh boy was he _not_ the least bit prepared for how this experience would be.

This kiss was so much unlike the one Tommy had given him. This time around, it was slow and passionate, it made his heart thrum wildly within him and Tommy worried that it might burst out of his chest.

When Dolittle pulls away, Tommy is left breathless and yearning for more. Dolittle chuckles and brushes a few short strands of hair out of his face that’d fell into his eyes.

“Something like that,” Dolittle muses and Tommy couldn’t help but take notice of the lines on his skin near his eyes, the curl of his hair and the glint in the older man’s hazel eyes that made his heart flutter. “And then, if you want it to be a bit filthier, there are other things you can do.”

“Show me,” Tommy whispers out in a trembling tone of voice, the small chill left in his bones slowly dissipating the closer he lies near Dolittle. “…Please...”

And that is essentially how he finds himself lying on his back, underneath the older man, Tommy’s small body dwarfed by Dolitte’s, engulfed in passionate kiss that nearly takes his breath away. He’d never had a tongue in his mouth before, never had these types of emotions surging through him like nothing else he’s ever experienced before.

The tingle between his legs as his fingers grasp a fistful of Dolittle’s curly strands of hair cause a whimper to escape.

“Oh, Tommy boy… I’m afraid I’ve gotten you all worked up.” Dolittle muses, pulling away and gesturing towards the small space between them.

Tommy gasps at the sight. He’d _never_ seen his penis do _that_ before. Rigid and stiff it felt. It’d gotten so much bigger in a matter of minutes. It sort of ached as well, throbbed incessantly as something clear oozed from his tip.

“I… what’s happening?” He sputters out, utterly freaked out, but mostly curious. “W-why does it look like that?”

“It means you’re aroused, my boy. It’s what happens to you when you’re sexually excited by something, or in your case, someone.”

“Oh.” Tommy blushes.

“You didn’t know that?”

“Yes!” Tommy answers confidently, but slumps under the older man’s deadpanned gaze. “…No…”

Dolittle laughs, but it’s not in a malicious way, more of an endearing sort of laugh — at least Tommy hopes it to be.

“Do you know what exactly boys and men alike do to fix this problem here?”

Tommy shakes his head.

“You don’t know?” Dolittle asks, dragging a lone finger across his chest, flicking his left nipple with his index finger.

Tommy swallows thickly.

“N-No.”

“They touch it. I mean, they touch themselves. They use their hands, stroking it until it goes back down to normal.”

So _that’s_ what his uncle was doing in the bathroom with the door cracked open while his aunt was out picking up groceries all those months back. Tommy had been so confused at what he saw, but he never asked his uncle about it, because he had a feeling it was something he wasn’t supposed to see, despite accidentally stumbling upon it.

“Have you ever done that before?”

“Yes! Plenty of times actually.”

“Why?” Tommy frowns.

“Because it feels good, that’s why. It especially feels rather fantastic when someone else is doing it to you.”

“…C-Can you try it with me?”

“I’m not sure you’re ready for something like that Tommy. And even if you were, I’m not the one that you should turn to for something like this.”

“But, you’re the _only_ one I want to experience this with, the only person I trust.”

Dolittle gazes down at him, eyes softening a bit as he brushes a hand down the side of his face idly. Tommy leans into his touch and sighs.

“Please…” he whimpers, twitching a bit from the insinuation alone. “I want to feel good…”

“Don’t we all?” Dolittle chuckles, his hand hovering near his twitching member. “I suppose I can do my ‘apprentice’ this one favour. Just know that, if you’d’ve been anyone else, I would’ve said no without question. So I hope you know what this means.”

“That I’m… special?”

“Without a doubt,” he reassures. “As much as I didn’t want to admit it in the beginning, I see a lot of myself in you, except, perhaps, you are better. Smarter, quicker, younger. You will be so much better than I was.”

“I’ll never be as great as you. No one ever will.” Tommy murmurs. “…Never.”

Dolittle smiles in that way that made Tommy’s heart pound against his chest at an exponential rate.

“Sure you will,” the older man replies, delighted. “I’ll make sure of it.”

Dolittle closes the gap between them with a kiss, sweet it was and full of passionate enthusiasm.

Tommy gasps when he feels it; the large, callused hand that keenly wraps around him, tight Dolittle’s grip was and slow his movements were, but that alone was enough to make Tommy dizzy with pleasure.

Dolittle’s mouth is on his neck now, suckling the skin, and it tickles, sending pleasant tingles throughout his body as a result.

“ _Ah_ —”

“Okay?”

“More than okay,” Tommy eagerly replies.

“Right.” Dolittle laughs, right near his ear.

He resumes lavishing his neck with affectionate kisses and for a moment; the only two people that exist are them. They’re the only ones that matter. Dolittle is the only person that matters.

The thunder is loud and boisterous as well as the violent winds that ripple through the sea and the ceaseless rainfall that follows thereafter.

So are the noises Tommy makes as he moans, the hand that strokes him tightens its grip on him, increases its speed, and it drives him mad with desire, unable to conceal his unadulterated pleasure any longer.

“ _Please_ ,” Tommy moans out, feeling the cot they occupied begin to creak from the force behind the jerks of the older man’s grip on his rigid flesh, dragging his hand up and down his length rhythmically. “P-Please don’t stop…”

“Wasn’t planning on it kid,” Dolittle replies, covering his mouth with his own, yet again.

And it’s nothing Tommy’s ever experienced before, nothing like he’s ever felt before, he doesn’t want _this_ to end, he wants this feeling, this pleasure that surges through him to last forever.

Pressure builds in his abdomen the faster Dolittle’s hand strokes him, the heavier his breathing becomes, the louder his moans and the way the creaking of the cot dramatically intensifies in a matter of seconds.

“Oh, oh,” Tommy moans, feeling the sparks of something he cannot truly explain emerge as a result of the harsh tugs and pulls from the older man.

“Come on Tommy boy, you can do it. You’re almost there.”

One of Dolittle’s other hands slide up his slender thigh, brushing against the small patch of pubic hair near his groin. Dolittle leans down and presses a kiss to his belly button and it’s what ultimately sends him over the edge.

Globs of milky white fluids spurt from his tip, his rigid flesh still held in a firm grip by Dolittle spazzes, painting their torso’s with his sticky wet fluid, making an embarrassing mess as a result that has his back arching and a high-pitched cry escaping his lips, nearly drowned out by the thunder that echoes thereafter.

“Oh, what a mess you’ve gone and made.”

“I… I’m so sorry,” he pants out, dizzy and sated. “I didn’t mean—”

“Don’t apologize. This is good! A sign I’ve done my job sufficiently.”

“W-What just happened?”

“You came, dear boy. You’ve climaxed. It’s what most experience when that good feeling I told you about becomes overwhelming and needs an outlet. It spurts out of you, sometimes it can be white like this or clear, and it can be _a lot_.”

“Wow…” Tommy breathes out, chest flushed pink as it heaves up and down. “That was… amazing…”

“It was, wasn’t it?”

“Yes… we have to do it again.” He breathes out, blinking up at the older man with wide, eager eyes. “Can I… can I try it with you? I mean, it’s the least I can do for all that you’ve done for me.”

“That’s nice, but I didn’t do this for you to feel pressured to do it to me, so if that’s what you thought, you are sorely mistaken.”

“No, no, I… it’s just… I want to make you feel as good as you’ve made me feel. I just… I want to make you proud, make you happy… that’s all.”

“You do that already kid.”

“I do?”

“Yes, all the time, even if I never say those words verbatim. You do. You really do.”

The words fill the young boy with pride, happiness and exhilaration. He grins and Dolittle smiles, rolling his eyes in jest of course before reaching a hand out and brushing his knuckles against his cheek affectionately.

“You’re going to be the death of me one day kid, I just know it.”

Tommy smiles up at him, smugly, before flipping their positions so that Dolittle now resided on his back as Tommy straddles his hips. The boy leans down and presses a passionate kiss to the older man’s lips, just the way Dolittle had taught him, gradually licking his way into his mouth, eliciting a groan from Dolittle in response.

“Slipped my mind how quick of a leaner you are.” Dolittle breathes once Tommy pulls away. “Didn’t really consider how that could work against me in the near future.”

Tommy grins and slips a hand down between their bodies that were pressed together; his hand brushing against the rigid flesh that seemed to pulsate in his grasp.

“And I never truly considered how it could work in my favour.”

“You little—”

Before Dolittle could finish his sentence, a peculiar twist of Tommy’s hand has the older man unravelling in ways Tommy had never seen. In ways he wanted to see more of. That is, if Dolittle allowed him in like this again, allowed him to see this side of him. Tommy hoped so, because it was just another side of Dolittle that he’d fallen pathetically hard for, another side of him that Tommy could not get enough of, could never get enough of.

“Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful.” Dolittle moans beneath him as Tommy mimics the hand gestures the older man had earlier performed on him.

Yeah, there was no way this would be their last encounter. It couldn’t be. It wouldn’t be. Not if Tommy could help it.


End file.
